Sometimes I wish I had a theme song.
Bear with me here.  When my maternity leave ended earlier this year and I returned to work, I’ll admit part of me was singing the “Welcome Back, Kotter” theme song.  In fact, one of my coworkers may have sung the “Welcome Back, Kotter” theme song to me when I sat at my cube.  We’re just that awesome.  It was fun.  It was random.  My days are pretty much the same these days, so anytime “fun” and “random” can bleed into “structured” and “scheduled,” it’s a nice change of pace.
I’m not entirely sure what my theme song would be, if I had one.  I’d like to think it would be something awesome, like “Let the Sunshine In.”  You know, the happy 5th Dimension version.  Not the sad, Vietnam montage version from the end of Hair.  Or “Crimson and Clover.”  Or “Time Warp” from Rocky Horror.
One of the things I inherited from my father is random singing.  I did not inherit my liberal use of jazz hands and hip sway from him, but I think he would have appreciated it.  That said, music is probably the number two thing that inspires me to write (number one, obviously being running around battlefields).  I have a playlist, of sorts, featuring my top songs that inspire me to work on “Manuscript.”  Unfortunately, at this time it’s just a theoretical playlist, as I’m too lazy to transfer songs/find cd/burn cd, but maybe someday I’ll get on the ball.  You know, roughly around the same time I start baking for Christmas.  Anyway, the Top Ten Songs of “Manuscript:”
1.  Taking Over Me by Evanescence
2.  Whisper by Evanescence
3.  Awake and Alive by Skillet
4.  Short Rations (To the Corn-fed Army of Tennessee) by Bobby Horton (period song)
5.  Main Title from the Gettysburg soundtrack
6.  Reunion and Finale from the Gettysburg soundtrack
7.  Gods and Generals from the Gods and Generals soundtrack
8.  Hero by Skillet
9.  The Diary of Jane by Breaking Benjamin
10.  Moonlight Sonata by Beethoven
Call Me, Maybe was pretty close to making the list.  I’m just kidding.
No, really.  I’m not.  That song randomly makes me happy.
Any my apologizes to the house I pass in the morning on my way to work.  Yeah, you with the chickens.  I realize it’s 6am.  But nothing gets me jazzed to start the day like continual playing of “Taking Over Me.”  Besides, I’m old.  The radio isn’t up that loud.
Do you have any specific songs that help you write?  I honestly wrote an entire scene in my novel listening only to “Gods and Generals” from the “Gods and Generals” soundtrack.  It’s a short song.  Let me be the first to tell you.  So when my scene dragged out into like, five pages…yeah.  Push that repeat button, baby.
Well, now that I’ve written an entire post about writing to music, I’m going to take advantage of the quiet that has fallen over the house, now that the Maniac Children are in bed, and spend some quality time with “Manuscript.”  Before, you know, I fall asleep on the couch.